Perceived service quality and its impact on customer satisfaction-a case study of bsnl cellular services in Madurai, Tamilnadu

Telecommunication sector in India has witnessed tremendous growth. There are around eight to ten Telcommunication service providers (TSPs) operating in parallel in the country. The stiff competition in this sector is a cause of concern for all the TSPs who are constantly in the process of evolving strategies to have an edge over the competitor to increase their customer base. This study aims to assess the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction of the customers by carrying out a survey amongst the customers of BSNL-cellular serviceat Madurai. BSNL is a TSP owned by the Government of India which is facing competition from the private TSPs. A survey was conducted using a questionnaire incorporating six dimensions of service quality-five dimensions of SERVQUAL and an additional dimension of network quality along with a scale to assess customer satisfaction. Responses were obtained from 138 customers. The data was then analysed and interpreted using correlation and regression analysis. The study revealed that network quality and reliability are two important dimensions of service quality that impact customer satisfaction to a larger extent in comparison to other factors. Hence, TSPs have to work upon these two dimensions to ensure customer satisfacation to increase their customer base and also to prevent customers from migrating to other operators.